Tradies nursed 5yo victim, cradled dead

A TRADESMAN who was driving past the Masjid Al Noor mosque where a gunman opened fire on hundreds of people inside has described the horrific scene that unfolded in front of them.

The contractor told Radio New Zealand he saw "people running for their lives" and heard "rapid fire" from a semiautomatic weapon.

"We saw these people hit the ground, they were being shot in front of us," he said.

The man said he and his colleagues drove 100m up the road and formed a cordon at the southern end of Deans Avenue so other people could not enter the street before rushing straight to the victims to help.

He said they were nursing victims on the footpath.

"There was one little girl, probably about five, she'd be shot and her father," he said.

He said with it taking 10 to 15 minutes for emergency services to arrive they had to spring into action.

"We managed to get the five-year-old on the back of one of the vehicles before the ambulance came, she was critical," he said.

"The man passed away in his (colleague's) arms. It was surreal."

The contractors stayed for more than an hour, even when the shooter was still at large.

"The shooter came out chasing people running away," he said.

"While my worker was nursing one of the victims there was more shots inside the mosque. "We were very vulnerable but in a situation like that you don't think about yourself."

Bloodied bandages are seen on the road following the shooting at the Masjid Al Noor mosque in Christchurch. Picture: Martin Hunter/AAP

It's still unclear how many people have been killed in sickening mass shootings at two Christchurch mosques, but those who saw what happened, say there was blood "everywhere" and described the gunman's cold demeanour in chilling detail.

There are reports of up to 27 fatalities and at least 50 injuries at Al Noor Mosque in central Christchurch and Linwood Masjid mosque.

One person who saw the shooting at the Al Noor Mosque described on Radio New Zealand what happened when the gunman entered the gates.

A former president of the mosque said a short man, wearing a helmet and glasses with his face covered entered the mosque.

He said the gunman was carrying a M16 or assault rifle with white writing on the barrel.

He asked the gunman "what are you doing?", but added that "the man did not say a word".

The gunman then opened fire at people as they took their shoes off at the mosque's entrance.

He said five people were killed, including a five-year-old boy. He said the shooting lasted for about 20 minutes.

The eyewitness said about 300 people were in the mosque at the time. He said people tried to find places to hide and about 30 to 50 people were lying on the ground.

"Bullets were all around the shooter as he shot," the witness said.

"All of them were shot down - all of them."

"I've seen five people dead."

He said some people were asleep during their prayers while others tried running.

One man at the same mosque told The Sydney Morning Herald he saw children being shot and added, "there were bodies all over me".

The newspaper reported that one man escaped, only to see his wife lying dead on the footpath.

Another witness at Al Noor Mosque with blood splatters across his shirt told AAP the shooter changed magazines seven times after opening fire as the crowd gathered to pray ran for the door.

"He went to all the different (rooms) and he shot everyone," he said, saying he had laid under a bench to pretend he was dead.